Change
by KidHeart4
Summary: The fifth story in my Mighty Ducks story series. Lis has grown up quite a bit, and now she encounters a new change! It is after the Human Factor episode so Protorious has come back, this time for the only human in the team. It turns out that he had got


Change?

By: KidHeart4

Disclaimer and notes: I do not own the Mighty Ducks, they and the other characters from the show belong to Disney. Though Lis is one o my own characters. This is the fourth story in my series. It takes place two days after "The Human Factor" episode, and at least a week since the last story.

Lis: It was a warm night in Anaheim, the team and I were swimming; or at least they were.

It had been about a week since Duke had saved me after being shot.

"Come on Lis!" Duke insisted, "Swim with us!"

I shook my head shyly.

"Why not?" Nosedive questioned.

"I'm not very aquatic," I told him.

Duke chuckled, "You're just afraid that I'll laugh if I see ya in a bathin' suit."

I looked away embarrassed.

"Aw, sweetheart, I won't laugh, cross my heart," Duke assured as rested a hand over the left side of his chest.

I smiled slightly.

"So will ya come in the water now?" He asked.

"Duke, I-AH!" I screamed as Nosedive pushed me in from behind; I hadn't even noticed that he's gotten out of the pool.

Next thing I knew, I was in Duke's strong arms, coughing out water as he held me above water.

"Easy sweetheart, I got ya," Duke said calmly.

"Nice catch Duke," Wildwing told him.

"Lis, you alright? I didn't mean for ya to go under the water like that," Dive apologized.

"I'm alright," I assured.

I then realized that I was still in Duke's arms. I looked at him a mischievous smirk on his face.

"Now ya have ta swim wit' us, I won't let ya go if ya don't," he told me.

"Alright, you win," I sighed.

A few hours later we were all tired, and were heading off to bed.

Duke and I stood in front of his bed room door; reluctant to go to our separate rooms. Hand in hand, he and I stood there.

"Sweet dreams, my angel," Duke whispered as he touched my cheek lightly with his fingers while closing the distance between our lips by kissing me deeply.

When he pulled away slowly to let go, he stopped.

"Funny," he laughed softly, "it hurts ta pull away."

"Duke," my room is right beside yours," I reminded.

"But, that's not the way I want it anymore," he said.

"No? How do you want it now?" I questioned.

"I want you beside me now, always with me,"he told me.

"Duke?!" I exclaimed, startled by this.

"I'm serious. Look, I know we've been together or a short time, but I love ya so much. Ya trust me like more than anyone else I've ever known, an' ya care about me," he stated softly, "an' someday soon, I want ya ta be my wife."

I was startled and yet happy at the same time when he said that, "Is that a proposal?"

Duke shook his head, "Not yet sweetheart, but when I do propose, it'll be a special moment, I promise."

Then he kissed me once more before reluctantly pulling away. With that we went to bed. It was kind of cold lying there for some reason.

I thought of what Duke had said; how he wanted me for a wife. I smiled contently at the thought of sharing the rest of my life with him. Then I drifted off to a dream filled sleep; dreams of Duke and I at our wedding.

When I awoke, it was because I had put down suddenly on a cold metal table. I was in a room filled with machines and tanks. I was scared, and when I tried to sit up, I found that I was being held down with metal locks on my ankles, wrists, waist, and neck.

Where was I?

"Well, well, are we ready to begin?" An all too familiar voice snickered, Dr. Protoreous.

I glared at him, "What do you want with me?!"

"I'm just going to help you," he snickered.

"Yeah right!' I spat.

"It's true, you see; the last time we encountered, I did manage to get a small sample of one of your friends DNA. Now I plan to use it to make you one of them," he exclaimed.

"Why would you do this?" I questioned.

"To see if my experiment works," he said.

"If it does?"

"Then I will be famous and you will be my creature," he told me.

"If it doesn't work?"

"Who knows, you may lose your life," he jested.

"You're insane!" I shouted.

"We'll see about that!"

With that he pulled a lever. The table went up and I was trapped in a tinted glass tube, and smoke began to fill up around me.

That's when I heard yelling outside of the tube, the team!

I could hear Duke, "Where's Lis?!"

Protoreous just laughed.

Then I heard the scientist gasping for breath. Someone probably had a hold of that pencil neck of his.

"Duke, let him go!" Wildwing ordered.

"Where is she?!" Duke snapped, "If she's hurt you'll pay dearly!"

I was bewildered; I had never heard or seen Duke so angry and violent.

"Where is she?!" Duke demanded.

"She's in there...," Protoreous choked.

Then I heard a yell as Duke threw him against a wall.

Soon I saw a dark siloute of Duke on the other side of the glass.

"Can ya hear me Lis?!" He asked.

"Yes!" I answered.

"Are ya alright?"

"I'm fine," I assured.

"I think he broke the lever off before we got here, I'm gonna have ta break the glass! So stand back, ok?"

"Okay!" I replied as I backed up and then shielded my face as he broke through the glass with a broken pole.

"Okay, I'll help ya-,"

Duke stopped in dead sentence when he looked at me.

"Duke, what's wrong?" I asked, bewildered

Now the team was staring at me in shock.

"Guys?" I questioned.

"Lis, what happened?" Wildwing inquired.

'What do you mean, what's wrong?" I repeated.

"Lis, ya look like us," dive finally answered.

"What?!" I exclaimed.

I looked in to a shard of glass, and sure enough he was right; I was just like the team.

"It worked," I said quietly.

"What worked?" Tanya asked.

I explained everything about the experiment and how Protoreous's plan had worked.

I then noticed how quiet Duke was.

"Duke, what's wrong?" I asked with concern.

Duke just shook his head as he answered, "We gotta get ya back ta normal."

With that he walked away; leaving me completely bewildered as Grin helped me out of the glass edged container.

Two days passed and Duke had avoided me the whole time. The rest of the team had been okay with the change, and so had I at first. Though Tanya was still looking at the DNA just incase I wanted to go back to my formal self. Yet why would I?

As far as I was concerned, I wasn't really human. I didn't go to school like most teens on Earth did. I was an outcast without family or friends except the team. So why not stay like those that truly care about you? I didn't see any reason till I saw Duke a little later.

Duke was all the reason in the world to change back if that was what he was secretly wanting. Yet since the change he hadn't said more than hi and bye to me. Two days later now, and he wouldn't even stay in the same room with me.

Finally I heard Duke and Tanya talking in the infirmary.

"Can you find a way ta change her back?" Duke asked.

"It wouldn't be a problem, unless she wants to stay that way," Tanya answered.

"Can ya convince her?" Duke questioned.

"Duke, you're the only one bothered by it; so why don't you talk to her? She probably thinks that she's done something to upset you," Tanya told him.

I nodded, secretly agreeing.

"She hasn't done anythin' wrong; I jus' want her ta be herself again," he said rather roughly.

"Well, you should still talk to her Duke," Tanya pushed, not giving in to what he was saying.

Obviously, Tanya was on my side.

"Just find a way ta get her back ta herself please," he snapped as he came out to find me.

I froze in front of him; hoping that he wasn't mad at me for ease dropping.

"Hi Duke," I said sheepishly.

"Hey," was all he replied as he walked passed me.

I felt crushed as he walked further away and I turned to watch him leave.

Finally I yelled before I could catch myself, "Why do you keep avoiding me?! Have I done something wrong?!"

Duke stopped dead in his tracks as he turned and looked at me.

I wasn't crying, but I couldn't help but be upset. Why was he avoiding me? Did he hate me now all of the sudden. Ridiculous or not, that's how I felt.

"Have I done something to make you not love me anymore?" I asked in confusion.

Duke now faced me completely as he spoke, "Of coarse not Lis."

"Then why won't you talk to me anymore?!" I demanded,

Duke sighed as he approached me, and then he grasped my shoulders as he spoke, "Sweetheart; I haven't been talkin' ta ya, 'cause I didn't want ta fall in love wit' the new you."

"Why?" I asked.

"Lis, ta me; what makes our love so beautiful and genuine, is that we love each other despite how different we are. Though now, it's gone," he told me.

"Duke," was all I said at first, "Do you really hate me being like this?"

"No hun', I jus' miss the real you. I mean, would you want me ta be human?" He asked me.

I shook my head, "No, Duke, I love you the way you are!"

"Then ya do understand how I feel. Lis, we should love each other for the real us," he stated.

"What if Tanya can't change me back? Will you stop loving me?"

Duke shook his head now, "Of coarse not sweetheart; I could never stop lovin' ya."

I smiled as we hugged each other.

"So, will ya change back?" Duke then asked.

I nodded; realizing how important it was for Duke and me to be our true selves and still love one another.

So off we went back into the infirmary; and Tanya said that it wouldn't be a problem to change me back.

Then she laughed, "You want to know who's DNA it was?"

"Who's?" Duke and I asked in unison.

"Duke's," Tanya told us.

Duke and I exchanged looks of surprise, and then we laughed ourselves.

Then Tanya set me up in a machine that would change me back. Duke sat in a chair close by waiting with me.

"Are ya sure it'll work Tanya?" He asked.

"It should; if not then you'll be one of us forever," she told me.

Then the machine closed around me and I was put to sleep as the change started.

When I awoke that morning in my own bed, I saw Duke sound asleep sitting up right as he slept on the end of my bed. Curious, I got up out of bed and looked in the mirror. I was happy to see that I was me again; though I had to admit that, I missed being like the team a little. Yet then I remembered what Duke said about our genuine love and I contently returned to my bed while slowly pulling Duke down beside me as I cuddled close to him.

"Lis?" He asked half asleep as he looked at me, "Welcome back to the real you, sweetheart."

I smiled as I hugged him tight, "Thank you Duke."

Then we both fell fast asleep in each other's arms; as the true us that we loved.


End file.
